DAY SIX-THE LAST POTHOLE

The Pothole of Bitterness...

The Heartache That Never Heals!

For at least the last ten years, my loving wife has been dealing with a botched crown job that has left her in much pain and discomfort; but, in just a few short days, our new (and highly skilled dentist) will be replacing that crown with a new and improved one. In this interim period of waiting for this new crown, my wife has mentioned on several occasions that she could not wait to "get rid of this horrible metallic taste in my mouth"....which got me thinking of all the times in my life that I have had this horrible taste in my mouth when someone I love, know and trusted has hurt me and shaken me to my core...that taste that truly starts in my heart and soul tells me that I have run headlong into the Pothole of Bitterness.

We have all been there. You are traveling the highway of life, minding your own business, when  someone says something that is totally false, fabricated and fictitious...with the sole aim of hurting you and damaging your reputation. You muster up the courage to take them on regarding this and to your total dismay, they are not the least bit repentant...how do you respond? For most of us, it is in that moment that we begin to experience that taste of bitterness. Or what about that promotion at work that you have poured your heart and soul into. You have done everything you can to get noticed so that the only logical choice is YOU...and then, the boss gives it to someone else with fewer skills and a whole lot less time on the job....and before you know it, here comes that test of bitterness that starts in our soul and works its way into our mouth (better watch what you say) and then into our actions (better watch what you do).

Or maybe you have been harmed physically by an abusive mother or father that treated you as a punching bag, blaming you for all their shortcomings and taking out their inadequacies by mistreating and belittling you...can you taste that terrible metallic bitterness as it begins to well up from your soul and makes you heart seem like a stone toward that parent? Or what upon that sibling that always seem to get what they wanted from your parents while  you, your brothers or sisters were scrapping for the tiniest bit of love and affection that might be leftover and fall your way. 

In the Bible, young Joseph, with his coat of many colors, certainly felt the bitterness of his brothers' hearts when they sold him into slavery and then convinced their father that Joseph had been attacked by a wild animal and killed. If you know the story of Joseph and all the heartache and hardships that he endured as a captive in Egypt, it is easy to imagine that bitterness was at the heart of his survivorship. Rather, it was the desire to see his family again that spurred him on as he followed the leading of the one true God and became second in command, only to the Pharaoh. At long last, when his brothers came to Egypt in search of food, he revealed himself to them. This could have been one of those scenes where they were all cast into a dungeon, never to see their father or the light of day again; but Joseph did not live in bitterness but rather in love and forgiveness...thus he brought the whole family to Egypt to once again live as a family under the covenant of the mighty Jehovah God.

When it comes to the pothole of bitterness, you are faced with two choices of how you will react to having such a jarring experience. You can move forward in retaliation, or you can release your anger and hurt in forgiveness...the choice is always YOURS!

Unfortunately for most people (Christians included), we see the course of retaliation as the correct course of action. After all, these people (our boss, parents, siblings, co-workers; the list goes on and on), they should be held accountable for their words, deeds and actions that harmed us in such a way...in fact, if we don't punish them, how will they ever learn not to treat others the way they treated us? God has something to say about that ....simply,

"VENGENANCE BELONGS TO ME; I WILL REPAY!' "Deuteronomy 32:35

So if God is in the business of setting things right and seeing that they learn their lesson, what should we do? Romans 12:20-21 says, "Therefore, if your enemy is hungry, feed him. If he is thirsty, give him a drink. For in so doing, you will heap coals of fire on his head. Do not be overcome with evil, rather overcome evil with good." And I call that RELEASE....you let go and let God. You were never meant to punish those that harm you; that activity belongs to a holy and righteous God. You were made to trust God and His infinite wisdom...you are to leave the details of who, how, when and why someone receives their "crops" from the seeds of destruction they have sown. Trust me, God has a whole lot more in store for them than you or I could ever imagine!

So forgive, forget and get back on the road to the abundant life that God has in store for you. Please don't let the pothole of bitterness wreck your life as you struggle each day to carry the baggage of hurt, hate and heartache from the evil someone has inflicted on you. Yes, there will be wounds that may never heal; scars that are visible and deeply etched into your soul...but the good news is simple....GOD LOVES YOU AND WHEN ALL IS OVER ....YOU WIN!!!!

Living Triumphantly.....Tasting the Sweetness of His Goodness,

WPQ

 

Poem for the Day...
Life can have its ups and downs
And people can be cruel;
But we who trust in the Father's love,
We follow the Golden Rule.
 
We don't allow the Evil one
To steal our joy away.
We gladly shun the bitterness
That life may bring our way.
 
We walk where God will lead us
And trust in His recompense
For someday in the future
His ways will all make sense!
 
WPQ 2017
 

 

 

 

 

 

DAY FIVE-The Pothole of Failure....

Living in the Community of "what if?"

If you are living in this world and are not acquainted with failure, then I must question you and ask...."Are you really living at all?" Let's be honest, we all have failed. In fact, the Bible tells us in Isaiah 53:6,"All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all" OR as I would paraphrase, "We have all failed to live as God intended, doing our own thing and hoping He would approve; but because of our disobedience, God has punished His own Son for our failures and He has borne the weight of our sin so that we might be declared righteous before a Holy God."

Now that's failure on a spiritual level; but what about the failure that comes into our lives and often paralyzes us so that we cannot move forward.

Like the pothole of failure when we marry the "love of our life" and after 25+ years of what we assume is wedded bliss, our partner walks out the door without so much as a goodbye or thank you for the years we've spent together...and you are overcome by the enormous feeling of failure.

Or what about that business you started in your youth. You poured all your time, energy and money into building a successful company and in so doing, neglected so much of your life and its other duties; then, in a  twinkling of an eye, it all come crumbling down, as you file for bankruptcy and have to begin life again in your twilight years....WHAM...SLAM... BAM...as you ricochet from the direct hit in the pothole of failure.

Then of course there is the loss of your physical health and the failure that you feel every time you look into a mirror. Gone is that handsome, debonair young man or that gorgeously-striking, young woman. Now you find yourself staring at a image of someone that remotely resembles the person you used to be...One hundred pounds overweight, losing hair, wrinkles upon wrinkles,  poor health and this terrible feeling that you failed to live up to the potential that you had as a younger adult...and no matter how you try, the failure of losing your health and your youth trap you into believing that life might as well be over.

But how does God view failure?  I believe God sees failure as the human condition...since the first bite of the apple and the curse of sorrow, pain and endless toil to exist, God knew that man would strive to succeed; however, in his own strength, man is destined to fail. Don't believe me...consider Peter, and the testimony of this ardent follower of Christ. He traveled almost all the way to the cross with his Master...devoted, loyal and ready to fight to save Jesus; however, when Jesus needed Peter to be the "Rock" and stand firm, what did Peter do?

HE FAILED MISERABLY....in fact, if Jesus had not prayed to the Father on behalf of Peter, his failure might have been insurmountable. In Luke 22, verse 31 and 32 from The Living Bible we read, "Simon, Simon; Satan has asked to have you, to sift you like wheat, but I have pleaded in prayer for you that your faith should not completely fail. So when you have repented and turned to me again, strengthen and build up the faith of your brothers.” Yes, Christ knew that Peter would fail...that he would deny three times that he even knew this man called Jesus, and if left to his own device, the failure foretold by the Savior would become a pothole for Peter from which he might never recover. But praise be to God that He is able to take our failures and make them turn out for our GOOD and His GLORY...and it is only God that can accomplish that in us.

We can take our failures and let them define who we are, and what we can or cannot do; but God, in His infinite wisdom, sees beyond the failures, the pain, the emotional scars and He breathes new life into our being, so that we can move up, move forward and move beyond the failures that may hold us captive. GOD ALWAYS HAS A BETTER WAY...He is just waiting for us to put aside ourselves and our disappointments and look to Him for new challenges and new opportunities to serve Him so that He receives the glory due Him.

Just look at Peter and the man he became when the risen Christ asked him, "Peter, do you love me?" His emphatic answer was, "Yes, Lord, you know that I do!" To which Jesus replied, "Feed my lambs." And after asking the same questions two more times, Peter, now grieved in his spirit said, "Lord, you know all things; You know that I love you." And in a loving manner that only Jesus could express to one that had so miserably failed Him, He told Peter to feed his sheep and to follow him, even if it led to death...which is just what the great apostle Peter did.

So, have you been struck by the pothole of failure...are you sitting on the apron of life's highway as the hustle and bustle of life races by? Have you given up and accepted your fate that your are just a miserable failure? Then, maybe it's time to ask yourself....do you love Jesus...because if you do, you know this....GOD DON'T MAKE NO JUNK...AND HE IS NOT IN THE FAILURE BUSINESS!!

It's time to trust in God, love Him as He intended, and move out in the faith that He has something for you to do that only YOU can accomplish....and since He is still working in and on you, He won't quit until you are just like Jesus!

Living to be like Jesus...Loving the Life set before me,

WPQ

 

 

Poem for the Day:

We can face life's darkest hour
Confident in our strength and power;
But knowing that we gave our best
May not pass the failure test.
 
For doing what we deem is right
By turning darkness into light;
With Christ beside me I cannot fail
No matter what….I shall prevail!
 

DAY FOUR-The Pothole of Guilt & Regret....

Anchored to the Past...living in the ruins!

I don't know about your days of childhood, but my were filled with carefree play and time with my neighborhood pals...romping up and down our street, doing what little boys do and more often than not, getting into trouble....nothing major, just stuff that we were hoping won't be noticed by the grownups.

Invariably, we would do something that we knew was wrong... like turn over someone's birdbath or knock the heads off of some pretty flowers with our baseball bats. Then, like roaches exposed to the light in a dark room, we would all go scurrying off to our homes with one thought in our little boy minds...DON'T TELL ANYONE WHAT WE HAD DONE. Doing that was never easy for me because my parents were raising me to be honest, truthful and "a good boy." So when I didn't squeal on myself or my pals, I always had this terrible feeling come over me as I tossed and turned in my bed at night...that feeling was GUILT...and until I came clean and confessed my wrong doings to my parents, it would not go away.

For a lot of people on the road of life, they have encountered the pothole of GUILT and it's family member of REGRET. Now, they are not living with the transgressions of their childhood pranks, but they are dealing with some serious stuff that has left them broken-down on the side of the road as they try and push away the guilt from an extramarital affair. They may have long since stopped the action of giving themselves to another person who is not their spouse, but the guilt and shame of that action of infidelity hangs over them and they still cannot bring themselves to let go of the pain and shame they caused their spouse, even when they have been forgiven. And it is in that failure to let go that they continue to build those walls of discord and discontent that keeps them from re-building the marriage they once had or hoped for when love was in full bloom.

Or what about that woman that did what she now considers unthinkable as she bore a child out of wedlock and then gave away her baby because of the societal mores that she was under. She relives every day that moment when her child was taken away and regrets the decision to let the child go...how does she live with the pain of guilt and regret that wells up every time she sees a photo of someone's new grand child or holds a baby in the nursery at church?

Or what about the person that spread some terrible lies about the person in the next cubicle at work and in so doing got a co-worker fired. Now, those actions and those words spoken have left an indelible mark on the soul and the guilt haunts every interaction with those still in the workplace. 

Or what about you and me and our relationship with a Holy Creator. We know that we have sinned and that our relationship is broken with our Heavenly Father, but we think that at the right time, when we get our act together, we will come to God with our cleaned up life and make amends for all our wrong doing...but until then, we will just have to deal with the guilt and the regrets that we carry for a life carelessly lived. But to me the pothole of guilt and regret is even worse and does far more damage in the life of a Christian that will not forgive themselves for their transgressions against God.

They have accepted the grace of God but are not at peace with God because they are still toting around the guilt that came with their sin. They have not learned the truth that when God forgives, GOD FORGETS....He do longer holds the sin against you for the debt and the punishment due you for your sin has been PAID IN FULL by Jesus. So when you continue to carry the guilt or live in regret for your sins of commission or your sins of omissions, you are telling God that the sacrifice of Jesus was not enough to pay for your sins....that it is only through your guilt that you can be made whole....and to that I say.....HOGWASH!!!!!  God's Word says it best in Romans 5:1 which says, "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." And that peace is made manifest by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and through the power of the spirit all GUILT and all REGRET is cast out...you just have to let it go and get back to traveling the road of life with this one central thought....

WHATEVER I HAVE DONE, THE BLOOD THAT CHRIST  SHED FOR ME HAS COVERED MY SIN AND NOW I AM FREE...A NEW AND GLORIOUS CREATION THAT HAS BEEN SET FREE..NO LONGER SHACKLED TO MY SINFUL PAST, BUT ALIVE IN CHRIST!!!!

Make this your mission statement ....Letting go of the past, holding firm to my Savior, I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength...there is no pothole that can keep me from my journey's end... GOING HOME WITH MY LORD WHERE ETERNITY AWAITS!!!!!

Dodging the potholes....Letting Jesus steer,

WPQ

 

Poem for the Day....

Life's potholes may get the best of you

     As you are tossed both to and fro:

    And you may question the Father's love, 

    Unsure which way to go...

 

But never doubt how much He cares for you,

As you travel life's highways;

The Father's love will see you through

To Eternity one day....

 

And when you enter those pearly gates

To be met by those above;

The Father's arms will be opened wide

As your welcomed Home in love.

 

WPQ 2017

 

 

DAY THREE -The Pothole of Rejection....

 The Bump of Loneliness

If there is one word in the English language that everyone almost instinctively knows the meaning, it is the word REJECTION. We have seen it displayed to and by others more times than any one of us would care to admit. We have felt the pain, dismay and loneliness that being rejected brings. Since rejection and the emotions that is brings seems to be so universal to all, you might ask why consider rejection as a pothole that can totally disrupt and derail a life...the answer is both simple and complex.

Simply put, rejection hurts us...and depending on how great our love and affection for that person who rejects us, the hurt can go all the way to the heart of who we are and who we might desire to become.

Now I came from a very loving and supportive family with two great parents and a sister, all of us bound in a family unit with our love for each other and for our Lord at the center of our home. We supported each other in many ways and even in the worst of times, we let each other know that they were loved and cherished as a family member. So, when I got married for the first time at the ripe old age of 27, I married a woman that was 31, widowed, with two sons from her previous husband. I loved her and her boys more than life; so when after three months of what I thought was wedded bliss, I came home from work to find my suitcases packed and my neighbor's husband sitting in my kitchen to tell me that my "wife" wanted me to leave ...I was floored, flabbergasted and extremely hurt from this display of total rejection. This cut me to my core and as I returned to my parent's home, all I could think about was how disappointed everyone would be in me that I could not make my marriage work. I took a lot of aspirin when I got home, went to bed and hours later, I woke up in the hospital after having my stomach pumped. I don't believe that I tried to take my life, but I was looking to ease the horrible pain I felt from being rejected by the woman I loved.

It is this kind of rejection that can be a pothole that consumes you and takes away your will to go on. It has happened far too many times when someone has been spurned, turned aside and rejected by a true love that they never recuperate...they become sullen and despondent and lose their zeal for living. Too often someone that has suffered tremendous rejection becomes a recluse or at best, a sad and lonely figure, living on the edge of society, but never really fitting in or moving forward from that pain of rejection.

Even Christ our Lord suffered the greatest of pain on the cross, not from the nails driven into His hands and feet, but in His final hour, He cried out to His Heavenly Father saying, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" It was in those last few breaths before Jesus died that He experienced the greatest pain of His life...the loss of His Father's love. It was in that moment God turned His back on His eternal Son as He bore the weight of all our sin on His shoulders...yes, Jesus suffered the spurning rejection of the Father so you and I would not have to know such heartache.

Is there a pothole of rejection...and can it do irreparable damage in one's life? I truly believe there is!  I believe it is far more insidious in our lives than often we know. But though we may encounter this pothole, we need not let it define the rest of our life...for God has already taken care of the holy rejection that comes from on high. He has forever called us to be His own, never more to be rejected by the sins that separate us from Him and His righteousness....WE BELONG TO GOD WHEN WE BELIEVE THAT CHRIST'S SACRIFCE ON THE CROSS PAID OUR SIN DEBT AND WE CHOOSE TO LIVE FOR HIM.

My friend, no more should you look at your life in terms of what you do not have because of who or what may have rejected you...Look rather at your life as the true gift that it is....a life set apart, abundant and free, loved and adored, happy and at peace because God has made you a part of His heavenly family ....it is a family in which you will forever belong!!!!!

 

Living life with no regrets....Loved by the Father...Cherished by the Son,

WPQ

 

Poem for the Day:

If life has been good to you
And you've found someone to love.
It's all because He cares for you
From His Heavenly throne above.
 
So don't despair if you're cast aside,
Don't let rejection rule the day.
Just trust and rest in the Father's grace
For another love is on the way!
 

WPQ 2017

 

 

DAY TWO-THE POTHOLE SERIES

 

The Pothole of Unexpected Loss and Sorrow...

 The First Big Bump!

 I am confident that when I mention this first pothole...the pothole of unexpected loss and sorrow...I am not catching anyone off guard with the news that life can bring you sorrow. In fact, in the third chapter of Genesis, we see sorrow and pain enter the world due to the sin of Adam and Eve when God says to the woman, "I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; in pain you shall bring forth children."  And thus, pain and sorrow took on dimension in the lives of us all...until that time that we return to dust.

But what is sorrow and how should the pain of unexpected loss effect us and our lives? The Bible teaches us that sorrow is the uneasiness or pain of mind which is produced by the loss of any good; or it is the frustrated hopes of good or expected loss of happiness that leads one to grieve or be sad; however, I am not speaking here of the sorrow that comes due to the natural ebb and flow of life. If you have ever lost a parent or grandparent to death in their ripe old age of late seventies, eighties or nineties, you indeed will experience the sorrow of loss of a loved one... one who meant so much to you as a cherished member of your family; however, due to their age and possible physical health at the time of their passing, you probably were expecting them to pass, maybe even hoping for such so they would no longer suffer in their degenerative state. And because of our sinful world order, you will be sorrowful, sad and grieve them and the loss that you have incurred with them gone...but even in those moments, life tells you to press on for at some time, you too will stand at heaven's door and be ushered into eternity.

But how do we deal with that unexpected loss when someone you love is quickly snatched from life...a child that is lost to cancer or a defective heart at a tender age; a teenage son or daughter killed in a senseless car wreck by a drunk driver; a mother of 3 children who dies of breast cancer at age 34; a son killed on the battlefield at age 22...and the list could go on and on. For we all have been devastated when someone we know, someone close to us, is ripped from the fabric of our lives, leaving behind a tattered soul that cannot move beyond the tragedy. That loss which creates such a  BIG, EMPTY HOLE often brings such pain and sorrow that we blame God and turn our back on the one we need the most to see us through such pain.

For Jesus himself was not immune to such unexpected loss...for when he came to the town of Bethany, the home of his good friend Lazarus, Mary came out to meet Jesus and took him to the grave of her brother. Scripture says, "Therefore, when Jesus saw her weeping and the Jews who came with her weeping, his spirit groaned within him and he was troubled." John 11:33 And in verse 35 of this same chapter we see the humanity of Jesus..."Jesus wept." John 11:35  Jesus had to deal with the great pain and the unexpected loss of his good friend, and he did as we all would do...He cried, releasing the pain and sorrow that dwelt inside. But more than that, He knew that God wanted more to be experienced in this situation than the loss of a loved one. God wanted all to know His power and the power given to the Son ...and in knowing this, we might come to the belief that God's power can overcome any loss and is far greater than any pain that might beset us... (End of part One)

I have known many people that have struck the pothole of unexpected loss. They endure to this day the great and awful pain that comes with such loss. They loved so much and had built their life around that person (mother, father, husband, wife, child, etc) in such a way that upon the death of that loved one, they ceased to live. Now, they pass through this life in a slow and pain-filled existence, just waiting for their turn to be visited by the Grim Reaper. Their joy is gone and, too often, even their love for the Lord has been snuffed out, void of even a smoldering ember to re-light their way back to their Heavenly Father. But there is hope for anyone who has hit the pothole of unexpected loss and pain...just turn in the Bible to the writings of Paul as he shared the great hope of the coming of Jesus with his Thessalonians  brothers and sisters when he writes, "But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope."

In this brief passage concerning the return of Christ, we are told not to be sorrowful, rather to trust in the Father and the word of Jesus who told us that He would come again to reclaim His own, "for where He is we shall dwell also."  And in that truth, WE FIND OUR HOPE!!!!

Yes, we may hit this pothole that will seek to wreck our life as one we love is taken unexpectedly from us; but that does not define us or in any way diminish the Fathers' love for us. We must choose to trust that God wants us to experience more from our loss that might have ever been gained by holding on to that great love...for in letting go, we can come to love Him more and learn to lean on Him for all of life's catastrophes. In fact, as Paul finishes the passage of 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, he concludes, "Therefore comfort one another with these words."

Maybe, you have seen your life upended and torn apart by the pothole of unexpected loss and pain, but our God is bigger than your loss and far greater to heal and take away your pain...You just have to be willing to let him take control of the steering wheel...and why not? There are probably more potholes in the road of life just ahead; so let Him who has the power and the knowledge get you to where you want to go... Because He Loves You with an EVERLASTING LOVE!!!!

Trusting the Lord....Dodging the Potholes,

WPQ

 

 

 

THE POTHOLE SERIES...REVISITED.

 

THE POTHOLE SERIES....Living Beyond the Potholes on the Road of Life!

 

For most of the better years of my life, I have spent my time traveling across the United States along the roads of commerce in search of a sale. Whether it was hawking eyeglass frames, PoeticArt, insurance or who can remember what else, I have encountered more than my fair share of potholes and have been left to deal with the destruction that they leave in their wake...no doubt you have too!

These insidious holes in the road are brought about by erosion, freeze and thaw events and the sheer number of vehicles that pass over a certain portion of a road, day after day after day...well, it is no wonder that left untreated or unrepaired, they lie in wait for that unsuspecting motorist to pass by and then they pounce...not literally mind you, but it sure fills that way sometimes. How often have you, like me, been humming down the Interstate, the sound of the clickety-clackety of your tires keeping the beat to the song on the radio when suddenly, without any warning, an unseen pothole consumes your tire, even if only for a split second, jarring your front teeth, making your contacts pop out or your toupee sit sideways. The steering wheel is contorted in a devilish fashion as your fight to regain control of your car, all the while trying to maintain your composure as you reassure yourself that all is "OKAY."

BUT IS IT?

As you continue your journey, you notice that the steering wheel seems to vibrate in your hands and if you take your hands off the wheel for just a moment, the car starts to change lanes without you steering in that direction. Now, you notice a funny noise coming from underneath the car that you have not heard before. The smooth and noise free ride that you have always enjoyed is somehow quickly diminished and all because of that unseen, man and nature-made evil entity called a POTHOLE.

Some would say, "SO WHAT?" That's just life so deal with it...and by and large I would agree. But what if the pothole were a metaphor for what happens to us in real life when we are cruising along, enjoying the life we have chosen...and what if that pothole (and others like it) derails us, knocks us off the road of life and puts us in the junkyard of despair, loneliness and hopelessness long before the end of our journey...WHAT THEN?

Which leads me to ask ....have you ever considered The Five Potholes of Life and where they may lead? Jesus did...the Bible does...and we should. So for the next five lessons or so, follow along with me on the road of life and see if you may have become a victim of one of these five potholes...

1) The Pothole of Unexpected Loss & Sorrow

2) The Pothole of Rejection

3) The Pothole of Bitterness

4) The Pothole of Failure

5) The Pothole of Guilt & Regret

 

Happy Motoring...Living Beyond the Potholes,

WPQ

A Poem for Easter

 

Will You Willingly Bear His Cross ….
 
It was a day, not like any other,
As angry mobs began to stir.
For the prophet of Nazareth
And His disciples; they gathered to confer.
 
This day was just another Thursday;
And now, with the crowds left behind.
The Son of God sent His faithful two;
A respite they were to find.
 
A place to gather with the Teacher,
A place of quiet and sweet repose.
Away from the seeking, pleading throngs,
To a shelter that few ever come to know.
 
So sheltered in that small Upper Room,
With His beloved disciples gathered ‘round…
The King of all the highest realms,
Now knelt on Holy ground.
 
With a towel tightly girded around his waist,
In the shadows of flickering candlelight….
Was a wash bowl filled with water used
To wash the feet of those that night.
 
For Jesus taught to each one there,
As he washed and dried their feet;
That if you seek to be truly His,
You must seek other’s needs to meet.
 
For time is quickly slipping away;
Will you look back to count the loss?
For if you seek to follow Jesus Christ,
Will You Willingly Bear His Cross?
 
W. Patrick Queen © April 2026